A fresh leadership crisis has hit the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) following the decision of the Chairman of its Board of Trustees (BOT), Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), to dissociate himself from the forthcoming Annual General Conference (AGC) scheduled to hold in Ota, Ogun State.
The development was contained in a formal notice issued to delegates of the organisation, amid confusion arising from the circulation of two conflicting dates and venues for the AGC by members of the National Executive Committee (NEC).
According to the statement, the BOT intervened to resolve the impasse and prevent a breakdown of unity within the human rights organisation.
It said strenuous efforts were made by the trustees to persuade the NEC to abandon the conflicting arrangements and ensure that the AGC was convened strictly in accordance with the provisions of the CDHR Constitution.
While the majority of NEC members reportedly accepted the BOT’s intervention, the National President of the CDHR, Comrade Debo Adeniran, was accused of announcing plans to proceed with what the trustees described as a “factional AGC,” allegedly in defiance of the collective position of the NEC.
The statement stressed that the NEC remains the only constitutionally empowered body to fix the venue of the organisation’s Annual General Conference.
“In view of this development, and having exhausted all avenues to prevent the needless polarisation of the CDHR, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Femi Falana, SAN, has formally dissociated himself from the AGC scheduled to hold at Ota, Ogun State from January 23 to 24, 2026,” the notice read.
Falana’s position, according to the statement, is anchored on serious constitutional and organisational concerns within the leadership of the CDHR.
Delegates were advised to take note of the development and to remain committed to the unity, constitutionality and integrity of the organisation, while acting in the overall interest of the CDHR.
